Tiny Golden Phoenix packs a floral punch

It's durian season and the bumper harvest means the king of fruit is a lot cheaper than last year. I had some really excellent Golden Phoenix or Jin Feng durians at 227 Katong Durian (227 East Coast Road, tel: 9751-4828) These are tiny compared to some varieties but the floral taste of it is mind-blowing.

Tender juicy beef from Wong Kee Noodle

My go-to place for wonton mee is Wong Kee Noodle (Block 118 Depot Lane), in a no-frills industrial estate coffee shop. Its beef brisket noodles with spinach noodles ($5.50) is excellent too. The chunks of beef are tender and juicy, and flavoured with orange peel and cinnamon. Love the crisp-tender kailan that comes with each plate but they used to give more.

Look out for Japanese white corn

There's nothing better than a fresh ear of corn, steamed and eaten off the cob with lots of butter. Unless you can get your hands on Japanese white corn, which is meant to be eaten raw. They are in season now, and come from Ibaraki, Miyazaki and Aichi Prefectures, and also from Okinawa and Hokkaido. Look for them in Japanese restaurants. The sweetness and crunch are phenomenal and you'll never look at corn the same way again.

Ikea's 50-cent cone offers a show and soft serve ice cream

What can you get for 50 cents these days? Not a whole lot unless you're at Ikea (317 Alexandra Road and 60 Tampines North Drive 2, tel: 6786 6868), where 50 cents will get you a show and soft serve ice cream in a cone. You pay and collect a token and a cone from the counter. Place the cone in the slot, slip in the token and push a button. The cone gets lifted up and snowy white soft serve is swirled prettily into it. And the ice cream goes way down the cone too. That's what I call good value.

Quinoa keeps it light for lunch

I know it seems like I indulge in rich food every day but sometimes, I like to keep it light. This Mixed Quinoa Salad ($9) is just perfect for a light lunch, and it is one of my favourite things at The Daily Press (Block 126 Toa Payoh Lorong 1, 01-561, tel: 6258 0167). Crunchy quinoa sits on top of mixed greens and the chilli-orange vinaigrette is light and fresh.

The Straits Times

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